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General discussion

Help with component selection for daughter's laptop

Jan 7, 2005 11:03PM PST

I am buying a laptop for my daughter who is in graduate school. My goal is to configure the system so that it will have the longest useful life for her while staying in a budget. She will use it mostly at home for word processing, spreadsheets, and Powerpoint presentations, and internet. She is expecting a baby this summer so she will want to do some editing of photos and movies. My son edits movies using Pinnacle on our pentium 4 desktop (1.6ghz, 254mb ram, 40gb hard drive) and he has to work in sections. She would like something that could do a little better.

We looked at various systems at retail stores and she liked the hp dv1040 and hp zv5340 with Brightview screen the best. I am planning to buy a custom system from hpshopping. Thanks to other postings I learned about Fatwallet.com and the hp student discount (https://eclipse.ebus.hp.com/dn/jsp/products_you.jsp).

What are your suggestions between dv1000, zt3000, or zv5000? Would a Pentium M handle the film editing? She won't be using it for games. Will buying the Athlon 64 extend the usefulness of the system (64 bit processing) or would the Pentium M last as long? The weight difference is between 1-2 lbs. Are there software compatibility issues with the Athlon 64 and is battery life and heat a problem?

I was going to buy the largest processor, hard drive, with 1gb memory stick to stay around $2000 including 3 yr extended accident plus warranty and dvd/cd burner(dv1000: 745,1X 1gb ram, 80gb(5400); zt3000: 735, 1x 1gb ram, 80gb(4200), 64mb video card; or zv5000: 3400, 1x 1gb ram, 80gb(5400) or 100gb (4200), 64mb video card). Is this smart or should I buy less because the system will be obsolete in a few years. I would really like to spend less if possible. Which components should I concentrate my money on? None of us is very technically-skilled although I have put in firewire and a dvd burner in my pc. Is there enough difference for her computing needs in having a dedicated video card to justify the price difference between dv1000 and zt3000. Is there a significant difference between 80gb 5400rpm hard drive and 100gb 4200?

Are there any specific accessories we should consider besides a mouse? Is a notebook expansion base important?

She needs me to get this as soon as possible. Neither of us have used a laptop before so we don't know much. Thank you for any advice you can give.

Cheryl

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